October 4, 2013 — Growing up in Houston, Texas, Karen Aydinian remembers her
father, a petroleum geologist, working with few female geoscientists in what
was then a predominantly male business.
Today, about one-half of such geologists in the industry are women, she
says.

Aydinian, a University of Wyoming master’s student in
geology, is likely to soon join those growing ranks.

She was interviewed for jobs by eight petroleum or oil and gas
companies during the Rocky Mountain Rendezvous (RMR) Job Fair, which took place Sept.
27-30 at the University of Wyoming Conference Center and Hilton Garden Inn. The
12th annual fair drew recruiters -- many of them UW graduates themselves --
from 23 petroleum companies and roughly 375 geoscience students nationwide from
80 colleges and universities. Of that total, 44 were UW students, according to
Randi Martinsen, a senior lecturer in geology and geophysics, and the event’s
founder and coordinator.

The UW Department of Geology and Geophysics and the
School of Energy Resources (SER) were
co-hosts of the event. The RMR is one of five regional job fairs and is sponsored
by the American Association of Geologists (AAPG)
and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG).

“I’m a fracture specialist, and they are hard to find,” says
Aydinian, who already has three internships with oil and gas companies on her
resume. “Basically, I look at natural fractures in the earth and analyze the
state of stress. It’s crucial for companies involved in hydraulic fracturing.
You want the fractures to go in an orientation where the oil and gas will flow
up into the well.”

In addition to her promising job prospects, Aydinian also
placed second in the job fair’s poster contest and took home $600.

Garnering face time

Like Aydinian, a number of UW students secured multiple
interviews.

Ryan Armstrong, a first-year master’s student in geology at
UW, was hopeful he would secure an internship after he interviewed with
Chevron, ExxonMobil and Marathon.

“I think my biggest strength is that I actually did a double
major in geology and physics,” the Fort Wayne, Ind., native says of his
undergraduate days at Colorado College that included field work in all of his geology
courses.

From his interviews, Armstrong said companies appear to have
projects they need completed or help with, but no one available to take on
these projects. That’s why they are looking to interns for help, he says.

Ryan Herz-Thyhsen, a UW graduate student in geology and
geophysics from Media, Pa., says he took the approach to just be himself and
not oversell his qualifications during his interviews with Anadarko, ExxonMobil
and Marathon.

Charles Nye, a UW graduate student majoring in geology, says
his plan was to emphasize his communication skills and his ability to complete
projects. He also was aware to be flexible, and not be over-prepared with his
answers.

“That could result in a person ending up in a company and
culture where they don’t fit,” says Nye, of Laramie. “These companies will be
making an investment. They want to hire a good person as well as a good
geologist.”

Tom McClurg, a geologist with ConocoPhillips who received
his master’s in geology from UW in 1990, says that is true. During interviews,
McClurg describes what it’s like working for a larger oil company, where there
may be many layers of approval for projects; or a smaller company, where there
may be a little more freedom. The candidates can then make informed decisions
on what size of company is a better fit for their personality.

He adds that ConocoPhillips has more resources than smaller
companies and provides job opportunities overseas in addition to North America.

Finding strong
candidates

Like other recruiters, Mark Olson says he finds good
candidates at the RMR because most geology students in Wyoming and the Rocky
Mountain region have had field experience due to the geology available for
study. Olson is manager of sedimentology and stratigraphy at ConocoPhillips.

“We look for candidates with field experience,” says Olson,
who received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in geology from UW in 1996 and
1999, respectively. “We can teach them how to use the software, the tools and
the gas industry. We can’t teach them fundamental geology.”

“We are quite successful here. This is one of our
high-profile recruiting events,” says Kurt Tollestrup, a senior geophysicist
with BP America and a 2000 UW graduate. “There is no graduate department in the
country that has 200 students to choose from in one locale. That’s the beauty
of the RMR.”

Aydinian says it was inspiring to see many of the recruiters
were young women. Margie Kloska, a geological adviser for Hess Corporation, was
a prime example.

Kloska, who spent the last seven years working as a
geologist in Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as managing exploration for Hess in
Indonesia, says this was her first time recruiting at the RMR.

“We love coming to UW. The students are well rounded in
their skill outside the classroom, and the level of education in the department
is very high,” says Kloska, who received her master’s degree in geophysics from
UW in 1999. “I use all of my coursework in my job.”

Hess interviewed 18 students, including Nye, at the RMR. In
all, Kloska says Hess will look at about 1,300 students -- including those
interviewed at other job fairs and during visits to universities -- to fill 10
available slots.

During his interview, Nye says he provided examples of
situations in the lab or field, including those that involved safety, and how
he handled them.

“The recruiters asked me to tell them about a situation,”
Nye says. “They wanted a story, not a list. With the details that fill a story,
recruiters get a less canned response.”

In addition to on-site job interviews, the four-day event
included a vendor expo, receptions, short courses, student poster presentations
that included cash prizes; and field trips, including an Anadarko oil rig tour
and a visit to the Niobrara Formation, a major shale oil area in northern
Colorado and southern Wyoming.

Photo:Charles Nye,
a UW graduate student in geology, talks with Margie Kloska, a geological adviser
with Hess Corporation. Nye was one of 44 UW geoscience students who interviewed
for jobs or internships at the recent Rocky Mountain Rendezvous Job Fair.